The Flyers and the Buzzers
by bluecatcinema
Summary: A certain Threehorn girl is about to fall horns-over-tail in love...
1. Bumping into Bambo

**Chapter One: Bumping Into Bambo**

As the young Threehorn Cera walked through one of the Great Valley's many forests, she carried herself with a distinctive strut of pride in every step, even more so than usual. And why wouldn't she? After all, it _was_ a milestone day in her young life, the day that every Threehorn her age eagerly waited for: Her top horns had finally started to come in. True, they were only little round nubs for now, but one day, they would grow into a pair of mighty spears!

Cera's father, Topps, was so proud of his daughter. "My little Cera's growing up." he had sobbed unashamedly. "It seems like it was just yesterday that you were crawling around the nest, learning how to walk."

Cera's stepmother, Tria, was a little less sappy about the development, but still quite emotional. "Good for you, honey!" she had said excitedly.

Even Cera's half-sister, Tricia, seemed excited about it, babbling some hatchling talk interspersed with "Cera".

Cera was now on her way to meet up with her friends, intending to show off to them just how "grown-up" she was becoming, not to mention rub it in Spike's face (Her Spiketailed friend had just yesterday been bragging about how his back plates were beginning to grow out).

As she passed by a group of bushes, Cera heard a strange rustling sound coming from the other side. As she moved in closer to investigate, her head suddenly collided with something that was very hard.

"Ow!" Cera cried out angrily, leaning back on her hind legs, and using the front ones to rub her head. "What's the big idea?!"

"Sorry." called out an apologetic voice from behind the bushes, "I didn't mean to hurt you."

"Well, you..." started Cera, stopping as she saw the stranger come out from within the bush. It was a young Threehorn boy, whose body was colored several shades of brown. He was slightly older then her (His top horns had already developed into points), and his eyes were brown and warm, just like the mud in Tria's secret place.

"You... you..." mumbled Cera. For some reason she couldn't understand, she found herself transfixed, unable to take her eyes off of the newcomer.

"Hi, there!" the young Threehorn said good-naturedly. "My name's Bambo. My herd just migrated here. What's your name?"

Inwardly, Cera shook herself, trying desperately to repair the connection between her brain and her mouth. "Ce... Ce..." she murmured.

"Ce-Ce?" repeated Bambo. "That's an... interesting name."

With a supreme effort, Cera managed to pull herself together. "No!" she screamed. Slightly embarassed by her outburst, she quickly composed herself. "I mean... my name is 'Cera'."

"'Cera', huh? Well, that's a nice name, too." said Bambo, courteously. "But I kinda prefer 'Ce-Ce' myself." he teased. "Maybe I'll call you that instead."

"Don't you dare." said Cera playfully, regaining some of her old attitude.

"Tell you what," smiled Bambo, "let's have us a little tussle. If you win, I won't call you 'Ce-Ce' anymore."

"You're on!" said Cera, and the two then engaged in a playful clashing of horns, with Cera eventually managing to turn Bambo over and pin him with her front legs.

"Okay, you win! You win!" chuckled Bambo, who Cera then helped back on his feet. "I've never been beaten before, ever. You must be one great tussler. Then again, you'd have to be, with a great-looking horn like that." His compliment caused Cera's face to grow hot.

"Thanks." Cera muttered, lowering her head so Bambo wouldn't see her red cheeks. "You weren't so bad yourself."

"So, 'Cera', what do Threehorns like you do for fun around here?" inquired Bambo.

"I was just going to meet up with my friends." said Cera, the blush wearing off.

"Mind if I tag along?" asked Bambo. "My mom's always telling me I should make new friends."

"I don't know," said Cera, warily. "My friends aren't exactly Threehorns."

"Well then, what are they, 'exactly'?" Bambo asked her.

"They're... all kinds, I guess you could say. You can still come though, if you want to." offered Cera.

"Sure, why not?" replied Bambo. "I've only ever met Threehorns before, so it should be interesting to meet these 'all kinds' of yours. Lead the way."

Cera led her new companion towards Green Hill, where she and her friends usually met each other in the mornings, at the same time feeling an odd fuzziness in her chest. She dismissed it as simply a feeling of joy at having made a new friend. Now that she really thought about it, Cera realised she had never actually had any Threehorn friends before. After hatching, she had always been in the company of her father and sisters, and not long after that, she had met Littlefoot and the others, and they had quickly became the only friends she felt she'd ever needed... until now, it seemed.

'That's all this fuzziness is', she thought to herself. 'I'm just happy at having a Threehorn for a friend'. She had no idea how wrong she was...

**To Be Continued...**

_(The Land Before Time series, and it's characters, are the properties of Amblin Universal. Bambo is my creation, although I did take the name from what Cera was originally to be called, before the creators decided that she was to be a girl.)_


	2. Bambo Meets The Gang

**Chapter Two: Bambo Meets The Gang**

Cera's friends stood at the top of Green Hill, eagerly awaiting her arrival, so that they could finally start playing the pointy seed game. They were expecting her any moment, but they certainly weren't expecting her to bring a guest. As they saw her coming up the hill, they could clearly see another Threehorn with her.

"My friends may seem a little odd at first," Cera told Bambo, thinking of Ducky and Ruby. "And sometimes a little annoying." she grumbled slightly, thinking of Petrie and Spike. "But they really are a great bunch, the best friends I could ever ask for. Only... don't tell them I said that. I wouldn't want them thinking I'm going soft on 'em."

"Don't worry," chuckled Bambo. "Your secret's safe with me."

In a matter of moments, the two young Threehorns had reached the hilltop.

"Hey, guys!" Cera called out to the gang. "I want you all to meet my new friend. This is Bambo. His herd just migrated here."

"Hi," said Bambo, slightly non-plussed at the wide variety of species that stood before him. "Nice to meet all of you."

"Hello, Bambo." said the Longneck. "I'm Littlefoot."

"I am Ducky." chirped the Swimmer. "It is very nice to meet you. Yep, yep, yep!" The Spiketail next to her grunted in a welcoming sort of way. "Spike thinks so, too!" chuckled Ducky.

"Me am Petrie." said the Flyer. "Any friend of Cera's is friend of mine."

"Hello, new friend, new friend, hello." said the Fast Runner. "My name is Ruby."

"Hi there, I'm Chomper." said the last of Cera's friends, a little fellow that looked oddly like a... No, it couldn't be! Bambo leaned forward for a closer look, scrutinising Chomper very carefully. "You're a Sharptooth." he said finally.

"Yeah..." said Chomper warily.

"You're friends with a Sharptooth?!" exclaimed Bambo, rounding on Cera.

"Well..." Cera replied uncertainly.

"Cool!" Bambo yelled. "I've always wondered what it would be like to be friends with a Sharptooth! Everyone always thought I was crazy, though!"

"It's really not that crazy." Cera reassured him. "Chomper's a great friend, even if he does eat gross stuff like Ground-Crawlers and Flying Buzzers."

"Hey!" said Chomper, slightly offended.

"It's nice to have you here, Bambo." said Littlefoot. "We were just about to play the pointy seed game. Do you wanna join in?"

"You bet!" said a gleeful Bambo.

The teams were set up four-on-four: Two-legged Dinosaurs against four-legged dinosaurs. Littlefoot, Cera, Spike and Bambo made up one side, and Petrie, Ducky, Ruby and Chomper made up the other. Bambo, being the newest player, had the honor of hitting the pointy seed first, setting up the mad scramble for victory.

"Come on, Bambo!" cheered Cera. "Let's show 'em all how it's done!"

"You got it!" Bambo cheered back.

However, the two young Threehorns had their eyes fixed on the pointy seed rather then on the terrain, and as a result they both tripped over a large stone. Tumbling across the grass, Bambo ended up sprawled on top of Cera, his snout touching hers.

"Whoops!" chuckled Bambo, getting back onto his feet. "Guess we just showed everyone how it's _not_ done!"

"Uh, yeah..." mumbled Cera, who had experienced a strange hot prickly feeling when their snouts had touched. "Remind me to watch where I'm going next time." she said, still flustered.

"Come on, then." Bambo said confidently. "Let's get back into this!"

"Yeah!" smiled Cera, joining Bambo in a charge for the pointy seed.

The young dinosaur's games wore on throughout the rest of the day. And, as the great circle started to descend, they finally decided to call an end to the day's fun and return to their nests, bidding their new friend goodbye as they did. Cera, however, stayed with Bambo a little while longer, as their families' nests were quite near to each other.

"You were right about your friends." Bambo told Cera. "They may not be Threehorns, but they're still a great bunch."

"Yeah, they are." agreed Cera.

"Not as great as us, though!" Bambo said playfully, nudging Cera as he did.

"Got that right!" chuckled Cera, nudging him right back.

The two young Threehorns soon reached a divide in the path; One way led to Bambo's nest, the other to Cera's.

"Well, guess I'll see you tomorrow." said Bambo.

"Yeah," agreed Cera, a touch of glumness in her voice. "See ya."

As Bambo trotted off, Cera started to think about what had happened to her earlier. She thought she had figured out why she felt all fuzzy, but she was at a loss to explain the hot prickly feeling she had experienced earlier. As she headed for home, Cera resolved to ask her father and Tria about it, hoping they would be able to shed some light on the matter.

**To be continued...**

_(The Land Before Time series, and it's characters, are the properties of Amblin Universal. Bambo is my creation, although I did take the name from what Cera was originally to be called, before the creators decided that she was to be a girl.)_


	3. Parental Advice

**Chapter Three: Parental Advice**

As the Threehorn family prepared to settle in to their sleeping place for the night, Cera steeled herself, getting ready to ask her father if he knew anything about the funny feelings she had been having around Bambo. She acknowledged that the answer could possibly be an unpleasant one, but in spite of that possibility, she was determined to know the truth about what was happening to her.

"Dad?" Cera asked nervously. "Can I talk to you about something?"

"Sure, honey. What is it?" replied Topps.

"Well, I met this Threehorn boy today, and then I started getting these really funny feelings...." started Cera.

"Oh, really?" asked Topps nervously. He had long been dreading this day, the inevitable day when Cera would start asking him about 'boys' and 'feelings', and he was in no way ready or willing to talk to his daughter about such topics. Hurriedly, he deferred the matter over to his mate. "Tria, Cera would like to talk to you." he told her, before quickly whispering "It's about a boy." Tria nodded in understanding, and Topps hurried over to the other side of their sleeping place, busying himself by playing with Tricia.

"So, what's all this I hear about a boy?" Tria inquired.

"His name is Bambo." Cera answered. "He's from that Threehorn herd that just migrated to the Great Valley a few days ago. And ever since I met him, I've been starting to have these really funny feelings, in my head and in my chest."

"Hmmm." pondered Tria. "Tell me, would this feeling in your chest be a sort of fuzziness?"

"Yeah, it is." confirmed Cera.

"And would the feeling in your head be a kind of hot prickliness?" Tria pressed on.

"Yes, exactly!" said Cera. "So, what's wrong with me, anyway?"

"Nothing's wrong with you, honey." smiled Tria. "You're probably just in love with this 'Bambo' boy."

"'In love'?!" Cera repeated panickedly. "Are you sure?"

"Completely sure." said Tria. "I felt the exact same way back when I first met Toppsy. Ah, those were the days." she sighed, remembering those bygone times fondly. "Sometimes, we'd go to the other side of the local watering hole, just the two of us, and we'd just..."

"Stop." said Cera, a little disgusted. "What am I supposed to do about this 'love' thing, anyway?"

"Well, that all depends." said Tria. "Does this Bambo feel the same way about you that you do about him?"

"I don't know." admitted Cera. "I mean, he does like me, but I'm not sure if he _likes me likes me_. And I'm not going to just ask him, 'cause if he doesn't 'like me like me', he'll probably just laugh at me and think I'm dumb!" She said all this very quickly, feeling it was best for her to voice her fears as rapidly as possible, so as to make the problem perfectly clear for Tricia.

"I'm sure he won't." Tria reassurred her.

"How _do_ you make a boy like you?" Cera asked desperately.

"Well, you can't 'make' a boy like you." said Tria. "But it wouldn't hurt for you to act a little more ladylike around him."

"Ladylike." repeated Cera with a grimace, as if the word was a sour sweet bubble on the tip of her tongue.

"You know, carry yourself with a more sultry air." Tria continued. "Walk gracefully, and talk softly. Swing your tail slowly from side to side. And rolling in some flowers wouldn't hurt either, some boys like a flowery scent on a girl. If he really does 'like you like you', then that'll definetely get a response out of him. If not, then he probably only thinks of you as a friend."

"Is that how you got dad to like you?" asked Cera.

"No." replied Tria. "He and I liked each other right from the moment we first met. But those tactics always seemed to help my sisters attract boys, so they should work for you, too."

"Okay," said Cera, an air of gritted determination in her voice, "It's worth a try. First thing tomorrow. Thanks for the advice, Tria."

"You're very welcome, honey." smiled Tria. "Best of luck for tomorrow!" She then walked over to Topps and whispered "Problem solved." to her mate's great relief.

As Cera curled up to sleep, her mind was abuzz with various emotions: Relief, for finally knowing what was happening to her. Annoyance, for having to act like a 'lady' tomorrow. And finally, anxiety, about whether or not Bambo liked her the same way she liked him.

'Well, I guess I'll find out tomorrow.' Cera thought to herself drowsily. 'One way or the other.'

And with that, the young Threehorn drifted off into a fitful sleep.

**To Be Continued...**

_(The Land Before Time series, and it's characters, are the properties of Amblin Universal. Bambo is my creation, although I did take the name from what Cera was originally to be called, before the creators decided that she was to be a girl.)_


	4. The Heart of the Matter

**Chapter Four: The Heart Of The Matter**

The morning had come all too soon for Cera. As she bolted down her breakfast of tree stars, she hastily ran down the advice Tria had given her the night before in her head. 'Walk gracefully, talk softly, swing my tail, roll in flowers.' she thought to herself again and again. Cera had never felt so nervous and scared in her entire life, not even during the numerous times when she was being chased by Sharpteeth. As far as Cera was concerned, a Sharptooth attack was nothing compared to the trial that lay ahead, and she would have gladly traded situations in an instant.

Once she had eaten her tree stars, Cera made her way towards Bambo's nest, taking a quick detour along the path, in order to roll in the most fragrant flowers she could find.

As she made her way towards Bambo's nest, Cera's stomach growled, the tree stars within feeling like stones. 'Just my luck.' thought Cera. 'I'm so nervous, I'll probably wind up throwing up all over Bambo the second I open my mouth.'

In an attempt to prevent such an occurance, Cera decided to practise using her 'soft' voice. "Why, hello, Bambo..." she purred.

"Hi, Cera!" came a voice from behind her. "How's it going?"

Cera spun around in shock. There was Bambo, walking out of the bushes and smiling broadly.

"How'd you know I was there?" he asked. "What gave me away?"

"Uh... nothing." said Cera nervously. 'Come on, Cera!' she thought. 'It's now, or never!"

"Why, good morning, Bambo." she said, in the sultriest voice she could muster. "And how are you doing today?"

"Oh, I'm... great." said Bambo, a little confused. "And you?"

"All the better, now that you're here." Cera giggled coquettishly.

"Okay..." said Bambo. "Is there something wrong with your throat? Your voice sounds all funny."

A little disheartened by the failure of the 'soft' voice to attract Bambo, Cera decided to move on to the walk. She had seen lady Threehorns perform such a strutting movement to entice a mate several times, but had never imagined she would have to do it herself one day. Fortunately, the young Threehorn had been blessed with a good memory, and started replicating the walk as best she could, swaying her hips from side-to-side as she approached the object of her desire.

"Oh, you." said Cera, keeping up the 'soft' voice in hopes that it would actually start working. "I'm just fine, but it's sweet of you to ask. Thanks for the concern."

"That's okay." said Bambo, who was now feeling just as nervous as Cera was. "You wanna... go get some tree stars? I've got this huge stash, hidden away where no-one but me could ever find them!"

"No thanks, I just ate." smiled Cera, implementing the tail-swinging manoevure as she neared Bambo. "We girls have to watch our figures." She decided to walk right past Bambo, inches from his nose, so that he would definetely catch the scent of flowers coming off her. Unfortunately, she wasn't watching where her tail was swinging, and it slapped Bambo right in the face.

"Ow!" cried out Bambo. "What was that for?"

"Sorry! said Cera, breaking out of her 'soft voice' routine. "It was an accident!"

"Well, then that's o... ooo... ATCHOO!" Bambo suddenly started sneezing. "ATCHOO!" "ATCHOO!"

"What's wrong?" asked Cera.

"You're covered in flower dust, that's what's wrong!" replied Bambo, having noticed now that Cera was so close. "Flower dust makes me... ATCHOO! ...sneeze. Please, keep back... ATCHOO! ...Before I sneeze my snout off!"

Bitterly, Cera realised that all of her attempts to attract Bambo had failed miserably. Blinking back the tears, the heartbroken Threehorn turned around and left the scene, slowly at first, but quickly picking up into a run.

"Wait, where are you going?" asked Bambo, realising that something was amiss. "Cera? Cera?!" he called out, before giving chase. Cera, not wishing to be caught, ran even faster, but Bambo wasn't about to give up so easily.

Bambo finally caught up with Cera at the top of Green Peak, the highest hill in the Great Valley. Unable to run any further, she had simply collapsed on her stomach, and was crying softly into the grass.

"Cera?" Bambo asked tentatively. "What's wrong?"

"Go away." sniffed Cera.

"Please, tell me what's wrong." Bambo urged her. "Does it have something to do with how weird you were acting back there?"

Cera sighed, and stood up. Already feeling embarrassed beyond belief, she angrily decided that her humiliation may as well be total.

"You're right," she admitted. "I was acting like that because.... because I wanted you to like me." she finished quickly.

"I do like you." Bambo reassured her. "You're my friend, remember?"

"No, I mean _like me like me_." said Cera irritably.

"Oh." said Bambo, comprehension dawning on his face. "Well, you didn't have to go through all that trouble." he told her. "Because, well... I kinda already 'liked you liked you'."

"You did?!" asked Cera, completely surprised by this revelation.

"Yeah." said Bambo shyly. "From the first moment I saw those pretty eyes of yours."

"You really think they're pretty?" blushed Cera.

"Like a pair of green shiney stones." smiled Bambo.

"Wait." said Cera, slightly confused. "If you really do 'like me like me', then why did you get all weirded out back there?"

"Because I really don't like 'girly' girls." admitted Bambo.

"You don't?" smiled Cera.

"No." confirmed Bambo. "I like tough, rough-and-tumble girls, like you. When you beat me in that little tussle yesterday, I thought you were the coolest girl ever."

"Thanks." said Cera, blushing again. "But if you did 'like me like me', why didn't you just tell me?"

"Because I didn't think you'd like _me_ if I did." admitted Bambo. "I thought a tough girl like you would've hated it if a boy started talking all mushy and lovey-dovey to you."

"Wow." said Cera. "I guess we both messed up."

"Yeah." agreed Bambo. "Guess so."

The two young Threehorns looked deeply into each other's eyes, the green meeting the brown, for what seemed like an eternity.

"Well," smiled Cera. "Maybe I'm not that much of a tough girl..."

"And maybe a little girliness isn't so bad..." Bambo smiled back.

The two closed in on each other, and rubbed their snouts together, for what seemed like another eternity.

"So," said Bambo when they finally parted. "Can I still interest you in those tree stars?"

"Sure." said Cera. "All that running built up quite an appetite!" she joked.

"Well, I know how you girls like to 'watch your figures'. Bambo joked back. "ATCHOO!" he suddenly sneezed again.

"Maybe we should stop at the watering hole first." offered Cera. "So I can wash this flower dust off."

"Please," agreed Bambo. "Or I might just sneeze our tree stars away!"

The Threehorn couple laughed together as they went down the hill. Cera's laughter was easily the most mirthful, as it carried within it all the joy, relief, and happiness Cera was feeling. It was the single greatest moment in the young Threehorn's life, knowing that Bambo felt the same way towards her that she did towards him. Not even the coming-in of her new horns, which just yesterday had filled her with such pride, could compare to this.

The young Threehorn had made a major step down the path to adulthood. It was a path that Bambo now joined her on, the two being together for many seasons to come.

**The End**

_(The Land Before Time series, and it's characters, are the properties of Amblin Universal. Bambo is my creation, although I did take the name from what Cera was originally to be called, before the creators decided that she was to be a girl.)_


End file.
